For the past two articles, I have written about team motivation using communication and recognition strategies. This article is about the third pillar to team motivation, which uses Education to enhance productivity, boost performance as well as ensure employee retention.

Some of the latest research from the Centre for Creative Leadership shows that people are hired for their technical skills, but fired for their lack of personal skills. Even worse, if an employee is not fired for their lack of personal (or soft skills) they can certainly cause tension and roadblocks in an organization’s positive flow of business. I am without doubt in agreement with these findings.

For example, an employee is hired for their education, experience and ability to perform a particular set of skills in your organization, but their lack of personal leadership skills prevents them from positively interacting with their teammates, serving customers in a way that will ensure a lasting relationship, or climbing the corporate ladder to maintain a future with the company.

Imagine your company is made up of employees who willingly make and keep commitments, who demonstrate positive attitudes, who persist in big and little things until they succeed, who recognize and appreciate uniqueness not only in themselves but in others as well, who manage their emotions well, who are serious but can also laugh at themselves, who constantly seek ways to multiply their value, who are motivated to take action, and who are willing to seek guidance where necessary and continue their education. What would a company filled with employees with these skills be able to accomplish? More importantly – what can you do to help create it?

Leadership is about relationships and credibility is the foundation of all relationships. Personal leadership requires self-knowledge. Education in personal leadership is a type of “unfreezing” which leads to determining what you really care about, setting goals and taking action to improve. If people can “learn how to learn” from their own experiences, as well as their colleagues, mentors and coaches to be their personal best in the workplace and in their personal lives, they become productive and make very effective contributions.

Personal Leadership Skills are the foundation of one’s success, but they are not typically taught in technical programs or in the education system of our youth, in college, or in university. Unless people are self-motivated to learn and polish personal leadership skills continuously, leadership programs where these skills are taught are very beneficial to any organization.

My advice when consulting with an organization to boost performance, productivity and profitability is always some form of education. Let’s face it, the only way to get better than you are, is to become better educated. If managers are apprehensive to spend money training employees that may leave the organization, I indicate to them that even worse than training people and having them leave, is not training them and having them stay.

Regardless of the industry, personal skills are the multipliers of performance. You are the vehicle which transports service, and like a car, your vehicle needs regular tune-ups, fuel and proper maintenance for good performance.

I encourage you to make education a priority when motivating your people, and specifically, focus on personal skills as the foundation of which all other education can be used effectively. For example, a time management program would be best implemented if an employee first has the skills to make and keep commitments. The foundation of personal leadership skills must be present to build a solid technical skill set upon.

Leadership programs are available to help people with the skills mentioned in the ideal employee scenario above. Consider the impact that this learning will have on you, your team, and your organization.